Max Sasson & Paul Cotter Could Reprise Their Roles As Linemates With The Canucks

A little over one week ago, the Vancouver Canucks signed forward Paul Cotter to a one-year contract worth a total of $2.15M. The 2018 fourth-round draft pick by the Vegas Golden Knights has spent his NHL career with both Vegas as well as the New Jersey Devils, but will look to continue that with the Canucks heading into what will be his sixth NHL season.

While the make-up of the Canucks’ forward lines will be clearer come the start of the season, Cotter is expected to fill in somewhere in Vancouver’s bottom-six. The forward can play both at center and at wing, though he has been put on wing more often as of late.

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Ironically enough, Cotter’s most recent linemate has also dealt with a similar issue throughout the past few months — and could wind up reprising his role as Cotter’s center come the start of the 2026–27 season. Max Sasson initially began his NHL career playing predominantly at center, but ended up being moved to the wing towards the end of this year.

At the 2026 IIHF World Championship, Sasson was moved back to center. One of his most consistent linemates at the tournament was none-other than Cotter, who finished the competition with a total of two goals and two assists in eight games. Both from Michigan, the two Canucks forwards combined for Sasson’s first point and Cotter’s first goal of the tournament, doingso in their first game together.

Cotter and Sasson played out the remainder of the tournament together alongside Mathieu Olivier, with both Canucks forwards averaging a little less than 14 minutes per game as part of Team USA’s identity line. The trio provided a fair bit of physicality and toughness while pitching in offensively from a depth-scoring perspective.

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Given their previous connection with their time as linemates with Team USA, there’s always the chance that Cotter and Sasson could end up playing on a line together for the Canucks. A pairing of the two U.S. teammates as well as another scrappier player — potentially someone like Brendan Gallagher, perhaps — could provide Vancouver with a high-identity third or fourth-line.

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